The Loisaida Center is proud to announce

2015 Loisaida Artist in Residence:

Edgardo Larregui

Edgardo Larregui

May 19th, 2015-May 25th, 2015

English

Objective

The objective was to create a site-specific installation for La Yarda (The Courtyard) of the Loisaida Center, to take place during the 2015 Loisaida Festival, and installation took place from May 22nd to May 24th, 2015. The installation looks to transform the typically cold, shady architecture of New York City into an environment which alludes to the native tropical island context of the artist’s home by transferring the colors of the flora and fauna to the material elements used. The effect will be a “living painting” composed of plants, music and objects within a tridimensional space incorporating typical festive folkloric decorative processes and practices of the popular islander aesthetics of a traditional “Sunday family outing.”

Overview

“Pal Domingo Familiar“ (‘Sunday Family Outing’) is a ground painting which represents a backyard swimming pool with lawn surroundings, creating the “illusion” of a day at the beach without actually going to the beach or actually having a pool representing the resilience of a community to enjoy an outdoor family outing even without access to the beach or the resources to own a swimming pool. A typical Sunday family outing in Puerto Rico is normally a day at the beach or nature, generally associated with the burning BBQ, the domino game, and a full beverage cooler of popular drinks––a pause on the strenuous reality of the daily struggle and hustle. However, this is one of many pieces related to the idea of traditional Puerto Rican cultural aspects, and, in collaboration with New York-based Puerto Rican artists Alejandro Epifanio and Hector Madera, some of their other work includes various sculpted pieces such as:

“El Jardín de Los Dominos de Chocolate“ (‘The Chocolate Domino Garden’) consists of a “ready made” dominos table, four improvised flower pots, tropical plants, and chocolate dominos, which may be made to “disappear” during a game.

“El Tendero Cultural” (‘The Cultural Clothesline’) is an installation of a traditional clothesline connecting residential apartment windows to windows, with the purpose of facilitating an “exchange” between neighbors of t-shirts printed with images representing their ideals, culture, tradition, and original art.

“La Felicidad“ (‘Happiness’) is an installation of typical outdoor Puerto Rican Christmas season decorations presented out of season with the purpose of evoking the festive spirit of happiness which the Christmas season inspire.

“La Pava Ensendia” (‘The Lit Straw Peasant’s Hat’) is a “ready made” consisting of a jíbaro pava (Puerto Rican peasant straw hat) lit from within with a colored lightbulb, which emerges from a tropical plant with sounds of salsa, bomba, and jíbaro music.